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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. key — in music
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. drill — a practice
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. key — for a lock
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. drill — the tool
  16. capital — a city
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. row — a line
  20. key — the most important part
  21. hand — in cards
  22. wax — to grow
  23. capital — money
  24. drill — army training

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com